


Homeostasis

by mistely



Category: Pacific Rim (2013)
Genre: Codependency, Developing Relationship, Domestic, Fluff, M/M, Nonbinary Newton Geiszler, Some Swearing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-12-13
Updated: 2014-01-08
Packaged: 2018-01-04 13:01:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 1,837
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1081316
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mistely/pseuds/mistely
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the Breach is closed, Hermann and Newton live together out of necessity. Little unorganized fragments because I can't stay focused enough time to write a complete fic. Will add more as I write them. Don't have a goal in mind.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. 26th March 2025

 

After the Breach is closed, Hermann and Newton live together out of necessity. Being apart for too long does strange things to both of them. They want to strangle someone, they are restless at night, they don't want to eat even if they're hungry.

 

It took a while for both of them to realize what they needed (each other), and they found it very difficult to bring it up until Newton admitted, during a phone call, that he wanted to be with Hermann, wanted to be in close proximity, and was very surprised in a pleasant way when Hermann told him he felt the same way.


	2. 12th October 2032, early morning

 

Hermann wakes up, slowly, startling Newton, who was staring at him.

"Is everything okay?" Hermann asks softly.

"Yes," Newt replies with a smile growing in size and intensity. "Yes. Yes, why wouldn't it be?"

"Your eyes are red," he simply states, feeling his hand being squeezed tightly.


	3. 27th October 2028

 

Hermann's hand finds Newton's. The park is beautiful at this time of the year. The trees are an infinite array of colours which include orange, yellow, a lot of brown, some red here and there. The sky is cloudless and some wind has arisen. Everything feels pleasantly quiet even as the leaves in the ground rattle under their feet and Newton's neverending monologue finds a comfortable pace in verbally annotating an apparently "very misleading" neurology article.


	4. 10th September 2025

 

Summer doesn't come without warning and everyone is already tired of the high temperatures.

 

"We should go to the beach," Newton suggests.

 

"Absolutely not," Hermann snaps. He's not been to the beach since his childhood. He was not at all comfortable with strangers seeing his almost naked body. He never was, but the sentiment is now aggravated.

 

Newton doesn't seem to magically realize this. "Aw, why not?" he asks, suddenly various decades younger and, without waiting for an answer, nudges Hermann's shoulder weakly. "It will be fun."


	5. 7th October 2025, early morning

 

Veins

Veins with liquid flowing

Flowing with emotion

Arteries?

Yes, arteries seemed like a much better option for whatever reason.

Hermann.

Hermann in blue, yanking whatever it is he is currently yanking.

Otachi.

Otachi in red, giving some kind of order.

Otachi yelling some words, of which "violet" is the only one distinguible.

But isn't this wrong?

Shouldn't Otachi be yellow and Hermann be green?

"This is a dream," someone says with a voice like Stacker's.

Newton is startled awake.

That dream was so wrong: Hermann should have been green.

Hermann _is_ green.

Hermann is always green.

Green numbers tell Newton it's barely past two in the morning.

He shifts beneath the soft sheets and returns to sleep, his last conscious thought being "Hermann is green."


	6. 1st June 2025

 

It is a rainy day.

 

Newton can barely keep his eyes open. He started reading a paper on a new application for bioluminescence that includes recycling most of the energy irradiated an hour ago. He's been pretending to read it for the last twenty minutes. Hermann is writing some lines of codes and not as exhausted in the dim light. It's only 4:30 p.m., but the scientists had a busy week and may have made a few bad decisions regarding sleep and sleeping hours.

 

Ten minutes later Newt is fast asleep and Hermann watches him contemplating if he should wake him up but ultimately deciding against it. It's the idiot's fault if he wakes up with muscle ache. He _does_ grab the paper, placing it on the table, and covers Newt's upper body with his untasteful jacket though.

 

Newton may be an idiot, but Hermann- he's not that mean. He decides. He will _not_ think _anything_ along the lines of "but he is _my_ idiot" or "but I _do_ care for him". No. Nothing of the sort. It's out of the question.

  
He _is_ going to wake him up sooner or later, if Newt doesn't wake up on his own. He's teaching... something, tonight. His students don't need to suffer because of his poor choice-making. Hermann is _not_ that mean. Definitely. Newton's students are probably _good_. They are probably nice and studious and as excited as them about science and good-looking and they deserve the best- what the _fuck_? Hermann needs some rest too, apparently.


	7. 5th December 2025

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warning: masturbation.

Newt looks at Hermann, really _looks_ at him.

 

While asleep, Hermann is so peaceful and lacks that sharp edge about him. Lacks that sense of alertness to him. For some reason, for some strange reason, for some _stupid_ and very, _very wrong_ reason, Newt is tempted to kiss his lips. He wouldn't even notice, would he?

 

The bathroom is suddenly occupied by one Doctor Newton Geiszler who splashes his face with cold water and considers taking a cold shower and when he looks up and studies his face looking back at him in the mirror and thinks he's probably not Hermann's type, that's it, that's the last straw.

 

He runs to the kitchen as fast as he can (like hell he's gonna return to their shared bedroom) and opens his laptop executing his mp3 player of choice, finding some of his favourite very loud music in record time. He opens his _special_ porn folder (which mostly consists of, surprisingly, tentacles and kaiju related stuff) and jerks off.

 

Newton knows too much about it; he's not going to give Hermann a non-consensual _anything_.


	8. 25th January 2027

It was a quiet night. The clock read 00:55. Most stars couldn't be seen from the city. Hermann was reading something that wasn't that interesting after a while and decided to call it a day.

When he entered the room, after having brushed his teeth and changed into a more comfortable attire, and flicked the lights on, the first thing he noticed was Newton sprawled in his bed. He paid it no more than a second of attention and went to the warmth and coziness of his bed. 

He dreamed of red flowers that night. Of red flowers and copper coins and someone with red hair.


	9. 5th September 2026, 01:16 AM

Newton can't sleep.

He's been staring at the ceiling for some time now. He's not even sleepy. A bit tired maybe, but his cozy bed is doing an awesome job of reducing it already.

He wants to talk to Hermann, or tell him something, or just listen to him.

This is too lonely and he isn't particularly fond of the silence.

"Newton?" Hermann asks, surprising him.

"Yeah?" Newt says in almost a whisper.

"Are you having trouble sleeping?" Hermann asks incredulous. Newt almost feels touched by it. Almost.

Newt has always had bad sleeping habits. He may sleep for 8 hours or not even 3 hours straight. Sometimes he can sleep in the most noisy of places and sometimes he can't sleep with any kind of sound. His levels of sleepiness may also not relate to the quantity of hours he spent both asleep or awake.

"Yeah, no, I'm just not sleepy, really." Newton answers hoping to change the subject. To what he's not sure.

"You can do something productive if you want, you know." Hermann says.

 _That_ was kind of offensive.

"I am _okay_ , really," Newton says, trying not to let his emotions slip into his tone.

"Do you want to engage in conversation?" Hermann asks.

What the fuck is wrong with the guy?

"Just go back to sleep," Newton says with his best leave-me-alone tone.

But Newton and silence don't mix up well, especially when there's stillness involved. There is no chance in Hell Hermann is going to believe that.

After some seconds pass, Hermann sits on the side of his bed, looking intently at Newton, crossing his arms over his chest.

" _Hermann_ ," Newton says, propping himself on his elbows. "Really?"

"If you are not going to talk," Hermann says, with the slightest hint of irritation. "I should at least make myself useful."

"There's nothing to talk about," Newton says and instantly regrets it because he realizes it's a blatant lie.

"There is always something to talk about," Hermann counters.

"Like what? Bioluminescence?" Newton asks, sitting up and imitating Hermann's posture. He almost misses a fleeting smile.

"Perhaps something we are both acquaintanced with" Hermann says.

It was now Newton's turn to smile shyly.

They stay like that for maybe a full minute.


	10. 5th September 2026, 02:27 AM

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: gender talk.

"It's getting really late," Hermann says. "You should really go to sleep even if you aren't tired; we both have to wake up early tomorrow."

"Yes, _mom_ ," Newt replies, internally deciding that he probably wouldn't be able to keep this up much longer and giving in.

"I am not your," Hermann pauses. "Parent, Newton."

"You know, one would just say 'mother'."

"I didn't know if you would feel comfortable with the change in the pronoun's gender"

Newton looks amused at Hermann for a moment."Who are you even. Why would I be uncomfortable about it?"

"I don't know," Hermann admits, and is probably gonna elaborate but is interrupted by Newt.

"What about gender? Female, male, genderless, genderfull, it's all kind of the same to me," Newt shrugs it off nonchalantly.

"Is it?" Hermann asks in what he hopes sounds like neutral curiosity.

Newton stares right into his eyes for only a second before frowning. "What I meant to say, is," he says and pauses, staring thoughtfully at the floor."When I was younger I thought about it a lot. About gender, I mean. I was so concerned because I didn't know what I was supposed to feel. I didn't feel completely male, but when I thought about being female, it didn't feel natural either. I tried to ignore it but then I found out that gender is not the binary I thought it was and there were a lot of people who labelled themselves as, I don't know, genderless, genderqueer, genderfluid, and probably a lot more I forgot."

He makes another pause, still not looking at Hermann, looking at his open palms resting on his knees.

"I thought _a lot_ about it, years ago, and then decided, _screw it. I am what I am, I don't care about my own gender._ "

He makes another pause, now looking up at Hermann's face, his eyes, possibly looking for a sign of any kind.

Hermann doesn't really know what to say and feels guilty about taking a moment to think, feels scrutinized under such an intense gaze.

"In all sincerity," Hermann starts, looking at him, still feeling intimidated by big (possibly fearful) green eyes, "I don't really know what to tell you."

No reaction.

"You are who you are. I know who you are. You are the best in your field, you are the most intelligent person I know, and you are my insufferable friend and colleague. That's all that matters to me."

Newt looks to the ground, smiling faintly.

"Thanks, man," he says softly, giving Hermann's shoulder a soft nudge. "That means a fucking lot to me."

They stay like that for what could be several minutes, could be a few seconds.

"Okay," Newt exclaims, patting Hermann's shoulder. "I think we should really go to sleep now."

"Agreed."

Hermann feels a weight coming off his shoulders.


End file.
